Equipment for axially shifting rolling mill rolls, particularly for grooved rolls, has been described in Swiss Pat. No. 525,041.
Axial shifting of the rolls of flat-strip or slab rolling mills has been described, for example, in German Patent Document No. 2,206,912. This reference discloses hydraulic piston and cylinder units which serve to move the respective rolls using shafts which extend through the respective comb or grooved rolls and which are arranged behind the rolling mill frame.
A more compact arrangement for moving rolls is described in German Patent Document No. 2,440,495. However, it has been determined that the arrangement of the actuating piston and cylinder units in the mill frame, or in other supports leads to difficulties and may limit the hydraulic piston and cylinder units with respect to size, diameter and, consequently, actuating power.
Furthermore, the need to provide extensions or arms of the holding elements for the rolls which are to be moved, tends to detrimentally interfere during the roll exchange operation or attendant refinishing of the rolls.